ATL-RTV

Shannon fishing during the golden hour

This year we wanted more rest and relaxation on our vacation rather than rushing from museum to landmark on a sightseeing adventure. And with our ten year anniversary coming up (we've been together ten years this April 12), we wanted sun, sand and alone time. Beachy, but not a resort that could be anywhere. Somewhere off the beaten path. Shannon found the perfect place, and we booked it just in time. A great rental house on an island in the Utila Bay Islands off the coast of Honduras.

Die-hard Braves fan that I am, I had a tailgate planned for the first weekend home game on Saturday, April 6 so we couldn't depart until Sunday, which meant we couldn't fly to the islands directly (Delta only flies to/from Roatan on Saturdays). Which meant we had a little adventure on the mainland on Sunday, but we're grateful we got to see a little of the countryside as our driver took us from San Pedro Sula to La Ceila, where we caught a ferry to Utila.  There, our host ushered us to the grocery so we could pick up essentials for the week, and then dropped us off on our island.

Upon arrival, we were greeted by the resident cat, which Shannon quickly named Kitty Kitty Yah Yah Cha Cha (yah yah for short), who showed us around her island. With two docks, comfy kitchen, dining and living areas, and our choice of bedrooms, we quickly settled in and spent a week together in our perfect paradise. Getting home was a bit less adventurous than getting there since we were able to get a direct flight (just 3 hours) from a nearby Island (Roatan) home to Atlanta with no trouble.

Now, being alone on an island for an entire week and swimming, snorkeling, cooking, sunning and reading was absolutely amazing, and it may sound glamorous, but balance the image in your head with the following: solar power, no air conditioning, 'primitive' shower heads (aka PVC pipes;), plenty of mosquitoes, and a few nights with no breeze to cool us as we slept.

We couldn't get enough of the views, the gorgeous water, the brilliant sun, the perfect balmy weather. Several varieties of palms, fruit-bearing shrubs, tall-reaching pines, the resident pelicans, an iguana, and a pair of noisy blackbirds completed the scene. We cooked delicious food, from chorizo con huevos y tortillas to shrimp tacos to steak fajitas and frijoles, and of course all the coconuts we could eat. We swam and snorkeled daily, collected shells each morning, read for hours on end, fished off the pier, and enjoyed each other's company. The snorkeling was unbelievable, with endless varieties of tropical fish. The second day, we saw a small eagle ray stirring up sand on the ocean floor. The next day, Mary had a too-close-for-her encounter with a very large eagle ray (five feet wide and coming straight at her to say hellloooooo)! 

All in all, an experience we'd gladly do over, again and again, but definitely not for everyone.  You can see photos from our adventure here.